Diaper support



H. B. CARTER June 28, 1949.

DIAPER SUPPORT Filed Oct. 1'7, 1946 INVENTOR HELEN BOO/(ER CARTER FIG. 4

ATTORNEY Patented June 28, 1949 2374,72? marina SUFPORT flelen nooker darterr Forest, Application-Octoberfl'i, 1946, Serial No; 7035-910 3 claims: (011 2 -112) Mia-invention relates to garment-supports and, more. particularly, to anuimproved diaperrsupporw I-Iretofore, it .has been the practicerto support diapers by, pinningor otherwise fastening the upper edge of the diaper, after folding, to the infants shirt or .waist. Ith'as also been .proposed'to provide diaper supports comprising-ea waistportion', that is to say. a separate garment,- adapted to fit' over the ".infantf's conventional undershirt, thedi'aper having diaper-attaching. means at'the front," back and/orsides.. While the'prior suggestedarrangements no doubt'flinction for the i'n'tenddpurpose, theyare open to many 'inherentobjecti'ons. When the diaper is supported directlyon' th'e ir'ifants under "shirt; considerable difficulty is encountered" in proper1ypositioningthe diaper with respect "to the lower-portion" of the shirtand"in"manipulating the pins avoid injury and discomfort to the infant. Even though a suitable support""m'ay eventually" be obtained," care" must "be exercised during the application-of the diaper tomrevent undue restraint in the'vicin-i tyof*'th"e*- infants stomach, and" to eli-minate saggingor dro oping at tareas: intermediate the points at "'whioh t "e diaper is pinned to the undershi'r'ti Supportfievices of. the :type "wherein:alsepataite garment' is used having; .diaper attaching meanstin theform of buttons,s;pins.a andz the likea associate'd with the lower portion; ,of-ithe r.ganmenh -do n'ot sati s factoril-y support: the diaper-Jot the i reason-that the positionsrsofl thepoint's of support cause sagging; due'atoiunevenapuili.exerted atithe front or reargof theregarmenm Devices-oi thisishh-raieterare salso z diifiouit itto I position i on infantf since 1 they" usually "are rprovided' w'ith cdnipara tively a small meek and iarmropenings.

The improved 'diaper support of the present invention comprises -'essentially, a butter-floss one-=- piece" halter -type'body; having an eniarged -neck portion andcro'pem sidesgto prWidunrestricted arm openings. The "diaper is supported through themedi-um of i elastically connected tabs ar rangedat the sides -of the-bodyiportion; the-front and b'ackpanelstogether with means for: at: taching the tabs, being designed to=maintaiii= the tabsfin a substantially' fleit position at the sides of the support.

An object o'f-my: inventiomisto provide an improvedtdiapersupport. l

Another object of my inventions-is to pi'bvide a diaper support .havingwimprovedi means for attaching and properlysupporting' a diaper in desiredxposition.

Afurtheriobject of..myr.invention is toiprovide still another object of my invention is to prothat-thence edgesw providetunrestribteerm? tabs-elastically connected thereto in thevici-nity of the side 01- the support-s A still further object of; my invention isto-provide a diaper support having symmetrically shaped'fron-t and back panels designed to-provide uniform .distributionof puil or tension throughout thesuppont,--af-ter thed-iaperhas been. attached.

With these and-other objects: in vieW; which may: be incident toim-y improvements; the-invention consists in the-- par-ts and combinations to be hereinafter set -forth-andclaimed;- with the understanding. that the several *necessar-yrelements,-.comprisi ngt invention, may be varied? in construction, proportions =and-arrangements,t without '-depa1=ting.-from--the spirit and scopeof the app ended-claims;

m order. to make-my invention "more clearly understood; I have shown in the accompanying diiawing means for carrying the same into practical effect, withoutdimitin-g'rthe improvements in their useful applications to the particular constructions, which tor-the -purpose=of explanation; have: been made the subject of illustration.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a plan view oi the body portion of diaper support.

Fig.-.2 is a: perspective front -v-iewof the diaper support showing. the arrangement of the *diaper attachin-gfltabs.

Fig. 3 is a perspective-side view of the diaper support showrr in-Fig; 2; and

Fig.-- 4. is a-detailview-'of a diaper attaching;

tabs

Referring-mo the drawings -andmore particularls :to- Fig. 1 :the. body portion 1 :of the I diaper support is formed--wi-th a: substantialiy :"ellipti'cai shaped cut-out :portiom 2, centrally thereot; the

members H and to distribute the pull 'or -tnsion uniformly .of l the bodypertiom a-fter-- -'a diaper" has beenattachedto the support.

withhe-wseen in Fig.2 thetsiipport is assembled by xfoldingwthe bodp portion I along a median" line thus providing symmetrically shaped front-and backepanel G- and' 11' It w'ilT be noted that the isemi-eliiptica'l shap'ed par:

tions define an enlarged neck opening Whaving shoulderpieces Sltat opposite sides thereo and openings Ill. Elastically attached to support members 5 at the lower corners of the panels are a pair of diaper attaching tabs II, which, by reason of the curvature of the sides of the panel, together with the elastic connecting tapes l2, maintain the tabs in desired fiat position at the side of the support, as shown in Fig. 3. Correct positioning of these tabs at the sides of the panels is one of the important features of my improved diaper support since they arev easily accessible for pinning purposes, and after the diaper has been attached, 'even distribution of pull or tension is obtained, thus preventing the shoulder pieces from sliding outwardly off the infants shoulders, while otherwise permitting freedom of movement.

Referring to Fig. 4, it will be noted that the elastic tape 12, by means of which the tab II is elastically connected to opposite lower corners of the panel, is arranged in substantially V-form, the closed portion l3 thereof being stitched or otherwise fastened to the tab. In connection with the V-arrangement of the connecting tapes, it will be seen that the arms partially overlap as at M, and that the free ends are attached to the tab support members 5 (Fig. 2) at one of the lower corners of the support. By means of this arrangement of the parts, longitudinal stretch is permitted between the support and the tabs to which the diapers are attached, thus allowing desired freedom of movement.

Each of the tabs ll (Fig. 4) is provided with a diaper fastening means, comprising a conventional safety pin l5, attached to one end of a suitable tape it, the opposite end of the tape being permanently attached to a corner of the tab, as shown at ll. The fastening means may thus be conveniently located when required, and since it is permanently attached to the tab, it cannot become mislaid or accidentally lost in the infants bed clothes or other garments during the time a diaper is being changed.

When it is desired to position the diaper support on an infant, it is only necessary to separate the panels 6 and I and slip the support over the infants head. Due to the elliptical shape of the neck portion, an enlarged opening is readily formed by pulling outwardly on the shoulder pieces 9. The unrestricted arm openings llll permit the infants arms to move therethrough. with ease and minimum effort.

It will be appreciated that in lieu of making the body portion of the diaper support from a single blank fabric, as described herein, that duplicate blanks can be cut to provide double thickness of material; the blanks being sewed and suitably bound along their marginal edges. The present invention also comprehends the use of different types of material for the body portion. For example, the fabric may, if desired, be of wool. In which case the support can, at certain seasons of the year, be used as a substitute for the infants undershirt.

While I have shown and described the preferred embodiment of my invention, I wish it tobe understood that I do not confine myself to the precise details of construction herein set forth, by way of illustration, as it is apparent that many changes and variations may be made therein, by those skilled in the art, without departing from the spirit of the invention or exceeding the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a diaper support of the character described comprising symmetrically shaped front I ings, the lower edge of each panel being arcuate shaped and the side edges thereof bein curvilinear, whereby to form a pair of integral tab support members of gradually reduced width'at the opposite sides of the diaper support in the vicinity of the lower corners of the panels, means to elastically connect a diaper support tab to each pair of said support members comprising a V-shaped elastic tapehaving its free ends attached to the corners of the panels, and a diaper support tab attached to its closed portion.

2. In a diaper support of the character described comprising, a body portion formed from a single blank fabric having a substantially elliptical shaped cut-out portion centrally thereof, the body portion being folded upon itself along a line median of its ends, forming symmetrically shaped front and back panels, the semi-elliptical shaped portions of the panels defining an enlarged neck opening having shoulder pieces at opposite sides thereof, the adjacent side edges of the panels providing unrestricted arm openings, the lower edge of each panel being arcuate shaped and the side edges thereof being curvilinear,.whereby to form a pair of integral tab support members of gradually reduced width at the opposite sides of the diaper support in the vicinity of the lower corners of the panels, means to elastically connect a diaper support tab to each pair of said support members comprising a V-shaped elastic tape having its free ends attached to the corners of-the panels, and a diaper support tab attached to its closed portion.

3. In a diaper support of the character described comprising symmetrically shaped front and backpanels, each of said panels having a substantially semi-elliptical shaped out-out portion at the top and centrally of the panel, said portions defining an enlarged neck opening having shoulder pieces at opposite sides thereof, the adjacent side edges of the panels being spaced from one another and providing unrestricted arm openings, the lower edge of each panel being arcuate shaped and the side edges thereof being curvilinear, whereby to form a pair of integral tab support members of gradually reduced width at the opposite sides of'the diaper support in the vicinity of the lower corners of the panels, means to elastically connect a diaper support tab to each pair of said support members comprising a tape having its free ends attached to adjacent corners of said panels, and a diaper support tab secured to the tape.

HELEN BOOKER CARTER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Ward Dec. 25, 1928' 

